> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.secapi.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# SEC Semantic Search API

> Search SEC filing sections by concept, keep the cited passage and SEC source URL, and use the result as evidence for further review.

Semantic search helps when a company may describe the idea you care about without using your exact words. Ask for a concept, constrain the issuer or form when you can, and review the filing passage that comes back.

It is a retrieval tool, not an opinion engine. A relevant result is a reason to inspect the cited filing, not proof of a risk, accounting treatment, or investment conclusion.

## Search for a disclosure by concept

```bash theme={null}
curl "https://api.secapi.ai/v1/search/semantic?q=artificial%20intelligence%20regulatory%20risk&ticker=GOOGL&form=10-K&mode=hybrid&limit=5" \
  -H "x-api-key: $SECAPI_API_KEY"
```

The endpoint is `GET /v1/search/semantic` and the query parameter is `q`. Choose `mode=keyword`, `mode=semantic`, or `mode=hybrid`; the default is `hybrid`.

```json theme={null}
{
  "object": "semantic_search",
  "query": "artificial intelligence regulatory risk",
  "mode": "hybrid",
  "sections": {
    "object": "list",
    "data": [
      {
        "accession": "0001652044-25-000014",
        "section_key": "item_1a",
        "ticker": "GOOGL",
        "source_url": "https://www.sec.gov/Archives/...",
        "highlighted_snippet": "...regulation of artificial intelligence...",
        "char_start": 120,
        "char_end": 260
      }
    ],
    "count": 1,
    "degradedState": null
  }
}
```

Fields not needed for agent handoff can be omitted with `view=agent` where documented. Citation fields remain available so an agent can return the accession, source URL, and excerpt boundary instead of an unsupported summary.

## Use the citation, then verify it

1. Keep `accession`, `section_key`, and `source_url` with the result.
2. Retrieve the cited section by accession when you need the full text.
3. Treat `char_start` and `char_end` as offsets in section markdown, not raw filing HTML.
4. When citation offsets are null or the response reports a degraded citation state, preserve the filing identity and inspect the source rather than slicing text programmatically.

## When to use another search path

* Use [full-text search](/seo/sec-full-text-search-api) for an exact phrase or a combined filing-and-section result.
* Use [section search](/api-reference/sections/get-v1-sections-search) for a cited passage with issuer, form, and filing filters.
* Use [filing search](/products/filing-search) when the question is which filings exist rather than what they say.

See the [semantic search reference](/api-reference/search/get-v1-search-semantic), [search guide](/products/search), [semantic-search glossary entry](https://secapi.ai/glossary/semantic-search), and [SEC filing RAG guide](https://secapi.ai/guides/sec-filing-rag).